Purification of Natural Energy

After checking all the equipment and finding no issues, Neji began the first step of the "Natural Energy Purification" plan: absorbing a large volume of natural air.

Because the concentration of Natural Energy in the air is extremely low, to obtain a sufficient amount, he had to absorb more natural air to purify a suitable quantity of Natural Energy.

This step involved four pieces of equipment: the air absorption machine, the air filter, the air flow stopper, and the air compression tank. Their functions were as their names suggested: absorbing air, filtering impurities from the air, preventing air from flowing back from the storage tank to the filter, and finally, compressing and storing the air!

The air storage tanks were quite large, about 80 cubic meters each. Six compression tanks were lined up side-by-side in the underground laboratory. The air storage tanks could compress natural air to a state where gas and liquid coexist under high pressure, with a compression ratio of approximately 1:400.

In simple terms, each air storage tank could hold about 3200 cubic meters of natural air. This is roughly the amount of air that would fill ten 100-square-meter houses.

This step was relatively straightforward. As Neji started the machines, amidst the rumbling sounds, streams of air were absorbed, compressed, and stored in the compression tanks. After about five hours, the air compression and storage for the first compression tank was completed.

The second step was air purification. Although air is formless and intangible, it actually contains many complex components. These can be broadly categorized as follows: nitrogen at about 78%, oxygen at 21%, rare gases at about 0.92%, carbon dioxide at 0.03%, water vapor at 0.03%, and Natural Energy at only 0.02%, making it extremely scarce.

One cubic meter of air weighs approximately 1.29 kg. With 3200 cubic meters of air in the compression tank, theoretically, one tank could yield 0.8256 kg of Natural Energy.

However, theory is one thing, and reality is another; getting even half of that would be considered good!

Theoretically, there were two purification methods: the first was to directly extract Natural Energy from the air, and the second was to remove other substances from the air, leaving only Natural Energy.

The first theoretical purification method had not been implemented yet, as a way to directly extract Natural Energy had not been discovered. However, the second method had a traceable path and was the primary method used in this experiment.

The substances that needed to be removed were mainly nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, water, and rare gases. Through small-scale experimental analysis and memories from his past life, Neji knew that the most effective way to remove these substances was the "liquid air separation method."

By increasing air pressure, the air would change from a gaseous state to a liquid state. Then, by raising the temperature, liquid nitrogen, with its higher boiling point, would vaporize first and leave the tank, achieving separation. As the temperature was raised further, oxygen, with the second-highest boiling point, would also vaporize and leave the tank.

With just these two steps, 99% of the total mass of the air was separated. Then, water vapor was separated using a desiccant, and carbon dioxide was absorbed using quicklime. This left only rare gases and Natural Energy in the air, achieving a purity of 99.06%. Finally, only the rare gases remained.

The main components of rare gases are: helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon. The first five are inert gases. The sixth, radon, is radioactive and can be very dangerous in large quantities.

To further purify the Natural Energy, Neji subjected the remaining liquid gases to a secondary purification process.

This time, three methods were employed: liquid separation, adsorption, and neutralization, involving seven steps.

Separating the inert gases alone took nearly six hours. The seven steps were carried out sequentially, with no room for error, exhausting both Neji and Sakumo-Tatsuryu. However, the results were gratifying.

When the final step was completed, high-purity Natural Energy was finally obtained.

Out of approximately 4000 kg of liquid air in the first air compression tank, only about 0.45 kg of high-purity Natural Energy remained!

This was equivalent to purifying the air about ten thousand times to obtain such high-purity Natural Energy, a purification method achieved through the wisdom surpassing an entire planet.

Furthermore, Neji was already planning to relocate the entire Natural Energy purification laboratory to the Summoning Realm. After all, the Natural Energy there was likely three to five times more concentrated than in the Ninja World, which would significantly accelerate the extraction of Natural Energy.

If he could occupy a sacred land, the Natural Energy there would likely be even more abundant! Neji mused.

Although Neji had not yet figured out how to use Natural Energy!

After a brief rest, the two of them continued the Natural Energy purification work, which lasted for nearly five days until Neji felt it was sufficient and stopped.

Looking at the sealed compressed liquid Natural Energy in his hand, Neji instructed Sakumo-Tatsuryu to pause the experiment and strictly keep the matter confidential. Neji himself destroyed several key components of the equipment to prevent information leakage.

He then left the laboratory with about 5 kg of high-purity compressed liquid Natural Energy, which was all that had been extracted during this period.

Sakumo-Tatsuryu, on the other hand, was utterly bewildered. He had only helped start and shut down some machines throughout the entire process and had no idea what was being done or what Neji had obtained. This was the best way to maintain secrecy; even if Sakumo-Tatsuryu were captured and his soul interrogated, he would have no useful information!

Because you can never extract correct intelligence from someone who knows nothing!

Moreover, Neji was currently just an invisible figure in the Ninja Academy. Who would pay attention to or care about a child around ten years old?

Exiting the base, Neji summoned the Thunder Roc and mounted it, soaring into the sky amidst the envious gazes of onlookers.

The highly concentrated compressed liquid Natural Energy was sealed in a scroll by Neji. To conduct experiments on it, he needed a safe and convenient location. Konohagakure was too dangerous and unsuitable. Establishing a base outside the village perimeter would be feasible.

Controlling the Thunder Roc, Neji decided to return to Konohagakure first!